


Student Exchange Is The WORST

by OverthinkingAntagonizing



Category: Homestuck, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: can you blame me, comments are highly appreciated, dialogue is a nightmare, i know momo is a bit ooc in the beginning but I'm not really sure what im doing with her?, i love writing fights hh, idek, im just having some fun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-23
Updated: 2019-04-08
Packaged: 2019-07-16 03:48:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16077740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OverthinkingAntagonizing/pseuds/OverthinkingAntagonizing
Summary: A group of students from a foreign school come to visit UA. Everyone immediately gets in trouble.Or, in which a concentrated group of trolls comes to visit a school for a week.





	1. Trouble Brewed of Sass and Ego

"As you know, class, today the students from the exchange program we had you sign on a few weeks ago will be arriving today." Said Aizawa. A few excited murmurs could be heard from the class. Someone said something about quirks, clearly speculating. Everyone knew who that was.  
Aizawa silenced them again. "Iida, as class president, and Yaoyorozu, as vice president, you're responsible for showing them around, and to their rooms in the dorms. Everyone else, don't be dumb. That's all."  
He bent down under the teacher's stand and stood back up while pulling his yellow sleeping bag on. "Tell me if any of them starts a fight."  
The group arrived at lunchtime, apparently, so no one got to see them until the next class. That is, except Momo and Iida, who the moment they came back from the introductory orientation lecture from Nezu, got bombarded with questions over their meal.  
"What are their names?" "What are their quirks?" "Are there any sexy girls there?" "Mineta shut up!" "Are any of them as ~Fabulous~ as me? Oh wait, that's impossible~*" and many more could be heard from the small table the two members of the class government chose to sit in.  
As Momo was fumbling for words, Iida stood up in his usual, and quite forceful, way. "Don't you all think you're being disgraceful?? Allow the new students to introduce themselves! It is not our place to give you the first impression!"  
The class fell silent, and Momo gave a small, relieved sigh. "Besides, we haven't gotten to talk to them much. Just see them and hear their names, that's all. We'll be officially introduced to them with all of you, so we know almost much as you do."  
Iida flushed a little but nodded. He just didn't want to admit he didn't know either, realized Izuku with a small smile.  
"Oh, why does it even matter?? They're gonna be gone in a few weeks anyway. They better just stay out of my way." Growled Bakugou, pretending not to listen half sitting half leaning one table over. "It's best to know who they are though. We'll be meeting people who'll probably end up heroes too. If we'll end up working together one day then it's better we make good relations." Said Tsu, and Deku nodded. "Besides, getting to know other heroes in training is fun!" He added.  
The rest of the lunch passed quickly, and soon came algebra, or what would have been algebra had the exchange students not arrived. Ectoplasm arrived with Eraser head, giving a short notice about how mathematics with him is cancelled so they can meet the exchange students. Then they came in.

The first one to enter, a boy in a thick dark sweater sporting the cancer sign, with dark black hair almost as explosive as Bakugou's, though with bigger, more united locks of obviously never brushed mess, and a pair of red horns almost invisible in his hair, walked in with an annoyed growl between his bared, sharp teeth and a somewhat arrogant step.

Right after him, and, in fact, pushing him in, was a girl with equally sharp teeth, horns twice the size and pointiness, and an impossibly wide grin that let everyone know just _How Much She Was Enjoying Herself_. Beyond her red-tinted glasses, the front row could see glazed over eyes in just as bright a red.

third was a stick of a boy, tall and lanky, with eyes in red and blue, covered with equally tinted glasses. Somehow, his coloured eyeballs seemed more focused than the girl before him's, looking smugly, and amusedly, at the girl harassing the boy. He lazily jaunted into the class, hands in pockets, wearing a shirt twice his width, looking back to whisper something at the girl that came behind him, an elegant lady in a stylish skirt and makeup perfectly made in various shades of jade, her skin so white it was almost radiant.  
lastly came a pair, walking together through the huge classroom door. A boy and a girl, both incredibly muscular. The girl was two head taller than the boy and almost everyone else in the class, with both hair and skin tinted green and speckled with freckles, and with highly contrasting blue cat ears and tail. She was casually talking with the boy, who was answering exclusively in short and forceful statements. He was incredibly buff, built like a wrestler, and wearing a tank top that was showing off his impressive muscles and short shorts revealing buff legs in dark, with vertical stripes. He had a pair of dark rectangular shades hiding his eyes, webbed with cracks.  
The six students lined up against the blackboard, 3 girls and 3 boys, each giving the class before them a different look. Actually, the first wasn't looking at the class, instead, he was staring outside the window, as if to make a point of avoiding eye contact, and looking as exasperated as one can be.

The red-eyed girl wasn't looking at the class either, her eyes aimed somewhere on the wall behind them, as she licked her lips indulgingly slow.

The boy next to her, with eyes red and blue, was scanning the class with his eyes, and every person he stopped on felt as if they were somehow laser-targets aimed straight at their head.

The stylish girl's look was the most gentle, and warm, of them all. She looked at the class with a civil and polite smile, taking their appearances in.

The cat girl's look was excited, playful even, as she was shaking her more serious friend's shoulder with barely contained enthusiasm. His look, however, was professional, and mostly hidden behind his dark glasses, eyes obscured by the sheer number of cracks. Deku wondered how he could see, if at all.  
Aizawa cleared his throat to get the class' attention. "These are the students. Play nice, or don't, I don't really care." He shrugged with tired eyes. "Introduce yourselves."  
"I'LL GO FIRST." exclaimed the boy in the sweater, startling everyone but his friends with his volume. "KARKAT VANTAS. NICE TO MEET YOU, BLAH BLAH BLAH."  
"I guess we'll do it in order then, hehe. Terezi Pyrope! Both Hero extraordinaire and brilliant lawyer to be!"  
"Tho- Thooo- Ssssollux Captor. Th- Sorry about that. Nice to meet you all."  
"Kanaya Maryam. It's a pleasure."  
"Nepeta Leijon! It's so nice to be here! I'm pawsitively ecstatic!"  
"Ahm. Nepeta. Please settle. I'm Equius. Equius Zahhak. Thank you for having us."  
Immediately the questions began. The same ones targeted at Iida and Momo at lunch, some new ones that have been thought up since, some that couldn't be heard in the noise. "Alright, settle down. Since the boys will be sleeping in the boys quarters, and the girls with the girls, Iida, you're in charge of Sollux, Karkat, and Equius. Momo, you're with Kanaya, Terezi, and Nepeta. You will now leave the class to give them a short tour and return the next period, while the exchange students settle in their rooms. They'll join you at today's Hero class. The rest of the class, school as normal." Silenced them Aizawa, except for a few disappointed murmurs in the back. Iida and Momo stood up and approached the students, Momo giving Iida a comforting look as he approached the clearly less friendly group of boys, and he returned her one filled with false confidence.  
Between the classes, Izuku, Uraraka and Iida caught up, and he told them a little about his experience in the tour. "I am proud to have done my job as class president! Even though they were reluctant, I gave them the full tour! From the cafeteria to every floor of the school!"  
"Wait, but don't all the classroom floors look the same?" Uraraka asked.  
"Well, yes, but that doesn't mean they aren't all equally important!"  
"But then no wonder they were reluctant! They probably got bored!"  
"Don't you think it was more practical to show them one floor and, uh, assure them of the others' importance?" Chimed in Izuku.  
Iida flushed again. "I haven't thought of that!"  
"Iida, is something wrong? You've been acting weirder than usual today," Asked Uraraka in a serious tone.  
"Ah- well... I'm just a bit nervous! This is the first time I must fulfil my president duties in front of another school, in a non-competitive environment! Their impression of UA depends on me!"  
"Oh! Don't worry about it then, I'm sure they already think UA is amazing! I know that was my first impression." Answered Deku, and Iida smiled a grateful smile. "Thank you Izuku! I'm certain UA's reputation seemed justified to them after the tour I provided!"  
Soon enough after-school hero training came, and the class was unusually excited to see the exchange students in action and show off to new, yet unimpressed faces. All Might was standing tall in front of ground beta, an urban cityscape. "HAHAHA! WELCOME, NEW AND OLD STUDENTS! IT IS A PLEASURE TO HAVE YOU! HAHAHA!" Roared All Might, standing at the faux city's entrance.  
"FOR TODAY, I THOUGHT WE'D DO SOMETHING RATHER SIMPLE, TO DEMONSTRATE TO THE NEW STUDENTS WHAT WE DO HERE AT HERO TRAINING. BUT, CLASS 1-A WILL BENEFIT FROM THIS EXERCISE AS WELL! IF YOU REMEMBER, THE FIRST EXERCISE WE DID WAS A HERO-VILLAIN BOMB RETRIEVAL EXERCISE, IN WHICH YOU WORKED IN PAIRS! BUT, YOU DON'T ALWAYS HAVE ONLY ONE ALLY! IN THIS EXERCISE, WE'LL HAVE TEAM VS. TEAM BRAWL! 3 STUDENTS NOT FIGHTING WILL BE THE VILLAIN TEAM'S HOSTAGES!" He explained, gesturing widely at the class. Equius held his hand up.  
"May we form teams among ourselves, or are the team-ups random?"  
"GOOD QUESTION! IN THE FIRST EXERCISE WE DID WITH THIS PREMISE, THEY WERE RANDOM TO DEMONSTRATE HOW YOU CAN'T ALWAYS CHOOSE YOUR PARTNERS! BUT! IT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW STRATEGY! AND PLAN AHEAD! SO, IN THIS EXERCISE YOU'LL BE CHOOSING YOUR TEAMS YOURSELVES!"  
"Nice," Grinned Sollux, "Guys, we're going team red vs. team blue right?"  
"I don't think-" started Kanaya, but Karkat interrupted her. "OH FUCK YEAH! WE'LL FUCKING CRUSH YOU!"  
"I doubt that," chuckled Equius, "I think my quirk is much more suited for... Crushing,"  
Bakugou stepped to the front of the class, towards the two groups. "Will you stop yelling?" he said, "it's getting annoying."  
"I'M NOT FUCKING YELLING, WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM?" Answered Karkat. Deku, watching intently, gulped as he recognized his changing expression. "What's my problem? Heh. Funny to hear that from *AN EXTRA*."  
"WHO YOU'RE CALLING AN EXTRA, YOU HALF-BAKED FUCK NUGGET??"  
Terezi stepped closer to Sollux and whispered something in his ear. He laughed. Kirishima tried to talk Bakugou down, but couldn't be heard over either of their voices.  
"Well, we'll see about that, tough guy." Answered Bakugou to another of Karkat's insults, and raised his hand to show explosions dancing above it like fireworks. "That is, if you have the balls to face me."  
"FUCKING THREATING ME WITH YOUR QUIRK? PLEASE. LIKE I'D GET SCARED OF THAT. I CAN BEAT YOU IN TWO SECONDS."  
"Oh yeah?"  
At that, Karkat did something strange. He brought his hand up as if to slap Bakugou, who immediately ducked, but as the hand came down it wasn't aiming at the face.  
"Shhhhhh." Said Karkat, his hand on Bakugou's shoulder, and an oddly synchronized wave of sighs of relief washed over the class. None of them was sure why. Maybe because it wasn't going to be a fist fight?  
"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh." Continued Karkat, and it became clear a quirk was at work as he gave Kaachan a little pat, the whole class feeling their muscles relax so suddenly they almost melted. But the most affected was Bakugou himself. He righted himself up, a look of confused bewilderment on his face. "I... don't understand."  
"You were getting fucking annoying, so I calmed you the fuck down." Answered Karkat, not shouting for the first time since he came to the school. "Told you I can beat you in two seconds."  
"Wait..." Kaachan started, looking down at his own hands, "How is this beating me?"  
"Are you going to fight me?"  
"I- wait- I- I guess... not? This is- wow. This is weird..." he started rambling a little, more focused on figuring out his own feelings, searching for that anger he carried on his back wherever he went. Its weight was simply gone. He was feeling quite... lightweight.  
"Yeah. I bet it's weird. Now, hEY TEACH, HOW ABOUT WE START THAT EXERCISE?" Karkat returned to shouting, turning to All Might, who seemed to have been as enthralled at the quirk's effect as everyone until Karkat addressed him. Almost everyone was jostled back into focus, though they all felt the effect lingering. Bakugou, though, was still looking at the ground, a smile slowly spreading on his face, devoid of his usual smugness and edge.

The exercise continued as expected. It seemed as though the exchange students already knew which teams they were dividing into, and moved into said groups accordingly. Karkat, Kanaya, and Terezi were staring daggers at Sollux, Equius, and Nepeta, who were giving smug grins in return. Izuku mulled the task over and went to pair with Iida and Sero, realizing that a hostage rescue mission will mean the need for mobility, while also being decent at defending if they instead play villains. That's when the unexpected happened.

First were Mina, Kaminari and Toru as villains, against Uraraka, Tsu and Tokoyami as heroes, and Mineta, Shoji and Sato as hostages. The hero team, with their higher mobility, managed to grab the hostages before time was up, Tokoyami taking up Mina's and Kaminari's attention as Uraraka turned Shoji and Sato lightweight then joined Tokoyami in fighting the villains, while Tsu carried all three hostages to safety.

Next came Sato, Shoji and Mineta as heroes against Todoroki's team, featuring Momo and Jiro as villains, with Midorya's team playing hostages. Everyone knew it was an unfair fight. The villain team won.

So on and so forth went the exercise.

Then came the last session, the last teams' turn.

Izuku gulped. It was his turn, and he wasn't very enthusiastic about his chances.  
They were going up against Iida and Sero, along with Ojiro.  
Kirishima gave him a thumbs up, his bewildered look still firmly in place.  
Bakugou sighed. "I'll regret this when it's over. Stupid quirk... Don't you dare embarrass me, Deku.  
Izuku quietly nodded and stepped beside him and Kirishima, ready to defend their hostages.  
He was going to be teamed up with Bakugou for the first time since Bakugou got his quirk.

"Hey, Deku, fucking hold it a sec. I need to talk to you."  
Bakugou was coming up to Izuku, Iida and Sero as they were talking strategy over. All three raised their heads, in different levels of alarm.  
"Calm the fuck down, I'm not going to fucking punch you. Listen, Deku, whatever that guy did to me, I feel... Fucking weird. But I'll be fucked if I don't take advantage of it. I think that as long as this is active, I wouldn't mind being in a fucking team with you, and you and I would make the best team in this fucking class. So..."  
"Kacchan... Are you asking me to join your team...?" Asked Izuku, hardly believing his ears.  
"Fuck, don't- don't make such a big deal out of it. It makes fucking sense, doesn't it? Whether we're villains or heroes, we both have strong mobility and defence. We're two of the strongest students in this fucking class."  
"I mean- yes, but- Kacchan, are you feeling alright?"  
"No- fuck- of course not, that's the whole point of this fucking offer. I don't know if I can fight like this, and I don't know when it will wear the fuck off. I need to have a strong team in case I'm a fucking failure, got it?"  
"R-right... um, guys? What do you think...?" Izuku asked, turning to Iida and Sero, both too shocked to respond.  
Iida snapped out of it first. "Well... This is such a rare opportunity! It would be a shame to pass it over! Even though I would want to be with you as a friend, I cannot allow you to ignore the exercise's purpose of teaching strategic alliances!"  
Sero gave a small nod, his trademark, though nervous smile spreading across his face. "It'll be a thing to see, haha! Sure, go ahead, we'll find someone else for the team!"

And so, Izuku, for the first time in forever, was on Bakugou's side, the whole class whispering, cheering or loudly questioning as their team took the villain starting position, sized up their hostages, and planned a hiding place.

  
They hid in an easy-to-guard "abandoned" building in the training ground, their hostages, Momo, Koda and Aoyama, tied up in one of the rooms on the top floor. They accounted for Iida's quirk being most useful in open spaces, and Ojiro's being useful for outdoor parkour. The only one they had a hard time planning for was Sero, but they concluded he will be an equal danger inside and outside, and so had little choice in the matter. Bakugou was scarily cooperative, openly discussing strategy with both Izuku and Kirishima, who contributed a little less in favour of watching in shock how Bakugou uses only as many curses as slipped naturally and without venom as he spoke. Izuku was inclined to share and double the sentiment, as Bakugou's sharp remarks were as dull as a tablespoon as he put his focus on winning the exercise.

"You really think you might not be able to fight?"  
"I don't know. I'm almost feeling limp, but... not in a physical way? Ugh, I don't know how to describe it, but whatever that fucker did to me, I don't know if I have it in me."  
"I'm surprised All Might let it happen, though..." Added Kirishima, scratching the back of his head. "I mean, I know it's a seemingly harmless quirk, but it's still technically using our quirks on each other during a fight. You think he let him off because he's an exchange student?"  
Izuku shook his head. "No, I don't think so. If anything, exchange students should be expected to act exemplary... Maybe it's part of Karkat's quirk that rubbed off on him? We all felt the wave back there, even if he was only aiming at you Kacchan. Maybe it somehow took All Might's intentions to punish him as well?"  
"Could be," Sighed Bakugou, "or he was planning for this to happen."  
"Huh?" Izuku's eyebrows shot up then furrowed as he considered the theory. "I mean, the whole class knows you're not very good with people... You think All Might wanted you to taste calm?"  
Bakugou shrugged. "Could be. So far, it's nice I guess, but it's hardly productive. I guess we'll have to ask him when this whole thing is done."  
"Right," approved Izuku, "We have to finish planning too, anyway."  
"I'll stick here with the hostages. I'm more defence than offence anyway, and you two should work on taking down the heroes," Said Kirishima with a shrug.  
The two nodded, then Bakugou turned to rub his neck. "If I find out I can't fight, I'll retreat back here so I can help you defend. You should too if that's the case, Deku. We're dealing with three mobility basterds here. You won't be able to block them all, and we'll need you back here for help."  
"Mhm. I'll stick beside you then."  
Izuku was still shaken from Bakugou's apparent willingness to have him right by his side the whole exercise when the start bell rang, marking the beginning of the exercise.

The moment the bell rang, Bakugou and Izuku were out of the building and up on the rooftops, hopping and blasting around in search of the heroes.  
They spotted them a moment later- Iida speeding along a narrow street with Ojiro manning the roof above him and Sero swinging between buildings. Izuku quickly whispered this to Kirishima over the comms, and he and Bakugou retreated to a rooftop spot where they knew Ojiro would see them, and that was a bit away from the building they have chosen.

Ojiro spotted them and took the bait.

Sero was the first to reach them, swinging from the rooftop like a circus acrobat to shoot tape at them both. Izuku hopped back, as Bakugou sent a blast to divert the tape's direction and blow it away. Sero landed on his feet, his signature smile in full force, still eyeing Izuku and Bakugou in astonishment. "Can't believe it... Oh well, we'll see how that new attitude holds up, Bakugou." He chuckled, then took a step back to fell off the building, then popping back up from the other side, touching his comm to inform his team he can't see the hostages through the windows.  
Soon Ojiro joined him, swishing his tail as he took a wide stance fit for martial arts.  
The two pairs leapt at each other quirks blazing.

kirishima was watching the only window in the room, ear out for the door, blocked with prop furniture, in case it was broken open.  
"So," Aoyama began, "Izuku and Bakugou...?"  
"It's that exchange student's quirk. Got Bakugou all calm and docile. We're all freaking out about it, including him."  
"I thought he was calm?" asked Momo.  
"Well, sort of? I think I can tell how he's feeling most of the time, and he IS calmer than I've ever seen him, but it's still him, and I don't think he appreciates this change all that much." Kirishima groaned, scratching his head. "I don't either if I'm honest. It's kinda creepy, seeing him like this. Unnatural."  
"You two are good friends right?" Asked Momo carefully, shifting in her loose bindings.  
"Uh, yeah, I guess. Even though he's rough around the edges, he's got a code of honour I have to respect, even if it's a weird and explosive one."  
"Do you..." grinned Aoyama, "Like him?"

Kirishima instantly blushed. "What- No! Jeez, let two guys be friends without romanticizing it. Don't think I don't know the rumours going around!"  
Momo smiled. "Well, I mean, considering how manly you always insist to be, it just seemed..."  
"What, two men can't be there for each other without being gay? Emotional maturity is fucking manly, get your mind out of the gutter!"  
Koda, out of all people, spoke up. "Yeah, l-leave him alone. Let him be a good friend..."  
"See? Even Koda agrees! Thanks, man. Always knew you were manlier than you let on."  
Koda nodded silently.  
Aoyama groaned. "Oh, come ON! Let us have a little fun, will you? I personally think you two will make a Fabulous couple!"  
"Well, it's not your call! Now shut up and pretend to be a hostage." Huffed Kirishima, turning around with a stomp.  
Then the door broke in half.

  
Izuku was amazed at how well they were working together. Of course, he would always analyze his favourite heroes, and Bakugou was one of the tops of the list, but it seemed like Bakugou was responding to his moves at the same level of knowledgeable practice. Is it because Izuku has started to move more like Bakugou? Because Bakugou HAS been analyzing Izuku's moves? Or maybe bakugou had a hidden talent for cooperation covered under layers of anger? Whatever the cause, they were doing great, Bakugou deflecting the tape with small explosions as Izuku defended from Ojiro's tail, and occasionally switching as the fight demanded.

Then they got the upper hand, Izuku managing to push Ojiro down to the ground, and they had a chance to tape them both up as Sero instinctively moved to help his ally.  
But Bakugou didn't make the move.  
Izuku got Ojiro half taped up and captured when he got Sero's tape in the face. With a startled yelp he jumped back, tearing it from his eyes, partially losing his right eyebrow in the process. He turned to Bakugou with an angry look, filled with fighting adrenalin, and stopped when he saw Bakugou standing with the capture tape in his hand and furrowed brows, looking at his own arms.  
"I was right. I can defend, but attack..."  
Izuku nodded solemnly and took a step back. "Then we act as a distraction until time runs out. We can't reveal to them where we put our base."  
"Right."  
They continued to fight, focusing on defence, Bakugou relying on Izuku to deliver blows as he deflects them.

It was Iida who triumphantly kicked down the door. "Aha! I found you! Prepare to be punished, villains! And to be saved, hostages!" He called, once again taking the role he was given a bit too seriously.  
"What...?" started Kirishima, surprised. "How did you find us?" He asked, lowering himself to a fighting stance, and hardening his skin.  
"Your overly loud private conversation gave you away! You should try to guard silently next time!" Answered Iida, dropping to a fighting stance as well.  
"Right..." Kirishima coughed, blushing a little once more. "And where's your team?"  
"Fighting yours, villain! But not for long, because..." Iida put his hand up to the comm, "I found them! Fourth building from the 5th street down!"  
"Well fuck." Kirishima groaned, and jumped at Iida.

Bakugou and Izuku noticed immediately that the hero team found their real base, largely because they instantly abandoned the fight. Both Ojiro and Sero hopped off and away, right in the direction their base was at. Bakugou and Izuku exchanged looks.  
"Blast off?"  
"Blast off."

Izuku had never had such a smooth flight at Bakugou Airlines before. Probably because every other flight in the airline was intended to harm him. Despite Ojiro's and Sero's prime parkour skills, Bakugou and Izuku arrived first thanks to the forces of physics, landing on the roof of their base and quickly sliding down into the room through the window, where they witnessed Kirishima and Iida duking it out, Kirishima slowly being pushed back towards the hostages by Iida's kicks. Bakugou, still unable to aim an attack at another, resolved to stand before the hostages, prepared to block any who try to come near, as Izuku jumped at Iida and tackled him away from Kirishima.  
"Thanks, man!"  
"Don't thank me yet! Ojiro and Sero are on their way, you have to help Bakugou handle them, I'll take Iida!"  
As he said this, Ojiro busted through the open door, Sero crashing in through the window. Kirishima Immediately turned to Sero, who he was closer to, and began taking tape to his arms guarding his face as he aimed a punch. Bakugou once again felt helpless and moved to switch with Kirishima.  
"Take care of Ojiro, I'll take Idiot Tape!"  
"Right!"  
Izuku was roughhousing with Iida at this point, both struggling to wrap the other in capture tape, until they were both wrapped with each other. It took All Might, watching from behind the scenes, a moment to declare them both simultaneously captured, and both turned limp with exhaustion when they realised how silly they must look. They untangled from each other, got up and left the room, taking another look at the scene behind them. "Hold yourself together, Kacchan..." whispered Izuku as they left. He still didn't want his team to lose.

Bakugou was falling behind. His involuntary switch from offence to defence was costing him the battle, sooner rather than later. He could barely bring himself to explode to blow away the tape, as a voice in the back of his mind that most definitely wasn't his own worried that he'll hurt Sero, and Sero was taking full advantage of that weakness. With Izuku out of the game, though Iida left with him, Sero's attacks gained new determination, and his grin grew wider. Ojiro, too, was now playing to finish. Over the comms, All Might declared that it was two minutes to the end of the session. They just had to hold on.

Which, apparently, they couldn't.

Sero finally got a bit of tape in Bakugou's eye and took the opportunity to jump past him and grab Aoyama, the lightest of the three hostages, taking him and jumping out the window. All Might called through the comm that one hostage out of three was saved. Bakugou got the tape off with a snarl, and then paused, realising a familiar feeling was bubbling back up into him. His sharp grin returned. "Fucking finally," he growled, and turned to jump at Ojiro, palms exploding menacingly. "No more Mister Nice Guy."  
Ojiro was Taken care of quickly after that, Kirishima taking a step back to appreciate the full return of Katsuki Bakugou. Sero returned to the battlefield from "rescuing the hostage" in time to get blown in the face too. He was out.

"VILLAIN TEAM- WINSSSS!"

As the class behind the scenes cheered or booed in tandem to their preferred team's results, Izuku and Iida were discussing quietly.  
"You really think All Might might have planned this?"  
"I mean, we can't be sure, but even though he wasn't very good at battle, there's no denying he got far more cooperative and, uh, "hero-like"."  
"Agreed... What do we do then? Confront him?"  
"Not in front of the class. I think we shouldn't make a huge deal out of it, Bakugou might get embarrassed, and we don't want that, not now that it looks like he's himself again."  
"Are you still afraid of him, Izuku?"  
"Well, I..."  
"VILLAIN TEAM- WINSSSS!" called All Might in his usual enthusiasm. Bakugou, Kirishima, Sero and Ojiro came back in different levels of disrepair, and All Might sent the two burn-marked heroes to recovery girl's office to fix themselves up.  
Bakugou gave Izuku a hateful side glance, but something about it was different. A touch softer, maybe?  
Izuku chose to take that as a good thing.

Then came the turn they've all been waiting for. Time for the Exchange students to show off their strength.

 

The foreign students took their places with grins, mean looks and chuckling all aimed at their enemy team. The "Blue team", Sollux, Equius and Nepeta, took the place of villains, with their hostages as Todoroki, Tsu and Sero. The "red team", Karkat, Terezi, and Kanaya, took the place of the heroes. Both teams took a few moments to strategise, and the bell rang, sending the villains with their hostages to find somewhere to hide. The heroes had a few minutes more to wait.

Izuku and Bakugou both watched intently from the control room with the rest of the class. They all knew what Karkat was capable of, but none had a clue about the others, and bets were being thrown in the air.  
The blue team's quirks were revealed almost instantly.  
Sollux, in a hero costume composed of a long-tailed jacket in yellow and black, and a pair of headphones connecting to a glass visor covering his eyes, both divided into red and blue, began to hover in the air, surrounded by an aura shifting between red, blue, and purple, and had their hostages floating in much the same manner. Probably some variation of telekinesis. Nepeta, wearing bandages around her chest, arms, legs and waist, and whose quirk was rather obvious from the start, fell into a run on all fours, moving with feline agility and grace. Equius, whose hero costume consisted of a black bodysuit featuring blue lines and a pair of oddly shaped shades, was pushing the ground with his feet with such force, he was leaving cracks in the concrete behind him. Clearly, super strength.

Izuku was taking notes when the hero team's cue to leave was issued. He looked up in time to witness two of the three's quirks: Terezi, dressed in teal and red, had sprouted scaly wings and a tail from her back and gave a smoke-filled puff before she grabbed Karkat and rose to the air. Kanaya, in a stylish skirt in red and a laced shirt in black with hints of jade, had taken a sip from some container. Her skin began glowing in earnest, and she zoomed forward, too fast for sight. Off they went.

Soon enough, Terezi seemed to signal something to Kanaya who nodded, and they changed direction to the villain base.  
"How did they know where the base is? Shouldn't they be too far for them to see?" Mumbled Izuku.  
"TEREZI'S QUIRK IS VERY VERSATILE," All Might began explaining, "IT IS KNOWN AS "DRAGON", THE CREATURE SHE CAN PARTIALLY MORPH INTO. ASIDE FROM, AS YOU CAN SEE, BECOMING COVERED IN HARD SCALES, GROWING WINGS, AND BREATHING FIRE, IT ALSO GIVES HER HEIGHTENED SENSES, AND DUE TO HER BLINDNESS, THEY ARE EVEN STRONGER."  
"Wait- she's blind??" Called Kaminari.  
"I mean, I noticed she wasn't looking at us, but I never thought..." started Uraraka with an awkward laugh.  
"WORRY NOT! SHE IS PLENTY POWERFUL, AND HER SENSES SO GOOD THEY ALMOST GIVE HER A BETTER "SIGHT" THAN OURS! SHE IS FAR FROM INCAPABLE!"  
"A blind hero..." Pondered Izuku, writing down in his notebook, "That's really impressive!"

Soon enough the hero team came in contact with the villains, hiding in an alleyway between two buildings. As soon as Terezi dropped Karkat off on a roof and began a hawk dive, she was halted in the air with the same aura that belonged to Sollux's quirk, and he floated up to meet her in the air.  
Kanaya, speedy as she was, had both Equius and Nepeta waiting for her in the alleyway's entrance. Though she was merely a streak of red and green on the screens, she screeched to a halt, as the walls of the buildings around her collapsed from the force of Equius' punch to the near wall.

In the havoc, Karkat quietly climbed down the wall to the back of the alley, approaching the hostages. They were tied, and Karkat quickly took out a knife from his pocket to slice open the rope. The moment he began sawing, Nepeta turned and growled at him with a smile on her lips, and pounced to tackle him down.

Equius was strong, but Kanaya was too. Still vibrantly glowing, she became a streak of speed again, going up and down the wall, bypassing the blockage completely. Equius turned to intercept her when she bit him. Hard.  
He turned a bit paler, and she pushed him off. He stumbled a little, dazed. She ran towards the hostages, pushing Nepeta off of Karkat, who she was playfully wrestling, obviously far out of his league.  
The moment he was free, he released a series of inventive swears and turned to finish slicing up the rope. Once he was done he began running with the hostages towards the rubble blocking the alley, helping them climb up it with a hurry, sending a worried look at Equius who was still not quite there.

"Why didn't he use his quirk on Nepeta? Shouldn't he have pacified her? It would have saved Kanaya the fight." Wondered Izuku.  
"Maybe after using it on Bakugou, he needed time to recharge?" suggested Momo.  
"Maybe, but then why would he use it on Kacchan right before the exercise began?" Asked Tokoyami, joining in on the discussion.  
"Right... Maybe it's about a moral thing. I mean, Bakugou was actively threatening him, while this is his friend?" Suggested Izuku, followed a thoughtful nod, "Or maybe he can only use it once on any person, and after that, it doesn't work anymore? or maybe..."  
Izuku went on to mutter and theorise under his breath, his whole class tuning him out as they've already become accustomed to doing.  
On the screens, Kanaya was battling Nepeta in a beastly battle, the cheerful girl and the elegant lady both disappearing into the animalistic behaviour. Up above, Terezi was breathing fire at Sollux, as he was raising a telekinetic wall of defence.

Below, Equius finally regained his wits and threw a piece of rubble to block the escapees' way, charging at them with a snarl and throwing more to perfectly create a wall to block their exit.

Then Nepeta misstepped.

Nobody saw what happened, both their movements were just too fast, But somehow Kanaya managed to wrap Nepeta in the thin line of capture tape. She was out, and so All Might announced.

Equius seemed to take that personally. Instead of focusing on the hostages escaping, he turned to throw himself at Kanaya, now avoiding her sharp teeth as their battle continued where it previously started. Noticing no one was keeping the hostages secure, Sollux gave Terezi a hefty telekinetic push and zoomed down to catch the hostages. Terezi took the opportunity to catch him with her clawed foot and wrap him in capture tape. He was announced out.

Karkat, with the hostages, heaved one of the rocks until it fell, and they ran for freedom. The hostages were freed.

The hero team won.

Bakugou cursed loudly next to Izuku. Apparently, he was cheering for the villains.

They all came back together, the blue and red team once again chatting with each other like casual friends, and not people who actively tried to burn and bite and crush each other only a minute prior.


	2. Meaningless Boasting and Questions of a Nerd

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladies and gentlemen, mothers and fuckers, back by popular demand and by the whim of an impulsive writer, second chapter of Student Exchange! On this special episode, Izuku is up to his old shtick, and we learn more about our favourite strangers! Shorter but sweeter, this will hopefully signal more content to come.

Of course, Izuku immediately approached the exchange students with a thousand questions on his lips. With such an exciting opportunity to see such unique quirks in action, how could he not follow it up with a thorough interrogation?

The first he approached was Kanaya, and her soft eyes immediately recognized his intent. She gave him a patient smile. "First, of all, that was a great fight! You all have such amazing quirks! Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"  
Without waiting for an answer and barely containing his excitement, he begins anyway. "Kanaya, how does your quirk work? It seems you have super-speed, but it's triggered by a drink? And you bit Equius? And-"

"My quirk, Midoriya, is called "Vampire"," She began, stopping his flow of questions that quickly started deteriorating into an undecipherable mumble, "And it is activated by consuming blood, as suggested by the name. It enhances all my physical capabilities and even helps heal wounds when I am hurt, at the cost of the glowing. It most enhances my speed, however."  
Izuku was eagerly taking notes, mentally reminded of some less pleasant blood-drinkers. Instead of making the comparison, he continues mumbling back the information and his own observations as she spoke. "That's so cool! Is that why you bit Equius, for a powerup? Where do you usually get the blood from?"  
"Well, blood isn't easy to get, but as a hero student, we have a bit of leeway on the matter. Whenever a local blood bank or hospital has a technological failure and some of their supply becomes unusable for medical purposes, I receive it. Unlike a living human body, my quirk is not picky about freshness."  
"Still, that can't be a lot of blood, can it?"  
Her expression got a touch uncomfortable, and she grimaced.  
"Well, it is enough for my purposes as a student. I don't need to drink much every time..."  
She was sweating bullets, and Equius silently offered her a towel. Midoriya could swear she was lying, but what about?  
Karkat intervened. "WELL, DORKFACE, AREN'T YOU GOING TO QUESTION THE REST OF US?"  
Oh, right.  
"Yeah, yeah! Sollux- your quirk is telekinesis, right? It seems really strong! Do the two colours have a meaning?"  
"Actually, my quirk ith pthionics." He waved his hand in amused dismissal of the mistake, not recognizing, or not giving attention to, his own mispronunciations.  
"Pythonics...?"  
"What- No, pthi- PSIONICS. Thorry. It meanth I'm an energy thourthe. Telekinethith ith jutht one of the utheth."  
"...Could you... Say that again?"  
"UGH-"  
"Sollux is saying his pawers are being a great big battery!" Supplies Nepeta, "And that means he can make things float, or he can put energy into things, or shoot it out!"  
"So you could be like Kaminari, and use it as electricity?"  
"Not exthactly. I'm not exactly electric, and to dithcharge ath electric energy, I have to be connected to a clothed thircle. Unleth I focus it out through my eyeth, which maketh me shoot out beamth, but it really drainth me. It'th better to jutht uthe the telekinetic part of it."  
"So..." Izuku began translating, writing down the information, "You have energy inside of you like Kaminari, but you take it out differently. You can use it telekinetically or shoot it out of your eyes, but to use it electrically you have to be wired up like an actual battery?"  
"Exthactly." He seemed satisfied, chest puffed in pride of his admittedly powerful quirk. "I'm the thtrongetht of thethe foolth."  
"If you were, I wouldn't have beaten you!" Laughed Terezi, elbowing him with a still scaly and unusually sharp joint. "Obviously I'm stronger, hehehe."  
"That reminds me!" Izuku jumps to her, opening yet another page. "You're blind?! And can turn into a dragon?! How can you fight?!"  
She laughed again, and gave him a mysterious wink. "I can smell you, duh! I can smell everything."  
"Your nose is that strong?" He asked in wonder, not noticing he was invading her personal space to look at it closer.  
She licked his face.  
He startled back, wiping at his eyes in alarm. "What- Why?!"  
She laughed. "I can taste you, too! I like your hair, it's a delicious shade of green."  
"I'm- I'm sorry, what?"  
Karkat was snickering with Sollux in the background, as Equius was giving Terezi disapproving looks.  
"I can taste colours!"  
"That's- that's a thing?" He asked, immediately switching back into enthusiasm. "That's so cool! That's why you can go around without seeing? You smell and taste the world?"  
"Exactly! Finally, someone who realises how cool I am."  
"That IS cool! And you can turn into a dragon too?"  
"Yeah! I grow scales and a tail and wings and can breathe fire. Obviously, it's the best quirk."  
He quickly writes down the details, excited to learn of so many different quirks.  
"And Equius and Nepeta, you're a classic feline quirk and a strength enhancing one, right?"  
Equius nods, stiff as usual. "Indeed. nepeta is specifically "Lioness", giving her greater strength and hunting instincts than the average house cat. I have Super Strength, though unlike yours, I cannot choose to activate it."  
"Ah, you've noticed my quirk?"  
"Yes, of course I have. It is quite an interesting one, too. Always good to meet a fellow strongman." He gives another nod, then flexes. His muscles, as intended, bulge out. It's almost disturbing, and brings thought of cancerous growth.  
"Like most of my family, my quirk is permanent strength. Naturally, I must drink a lot of milk and keep the rest of my body aside from the muscle, such as bones, as strong as possible to keep up. Wouldn't want to be breaking them now."  
Was that an intentional jab at him, wondered Izuku. It's possible that Equius saw a recording of the tournament, and how Izuku used to break his bones.  
Embarrassing.  
Just in case it wasn't on purpose, he wasn't going to mention it.  
"Well! That is very smart! Planning ahead is always useful."  
"Indeed. However, in day-to-day life, when I need special delicacy with my hands, I must use these."  
He pulled out a pair of gloves from his backpack, which they all picked back up after the exercise was over, and opened their armhole to show the insides. They had metal braces going through them.  
"They are strength-limiting gloves. Due to the difficulty of moving them and the resistance they give, using my hands in my usual way inside them results in gentler movements than my quirk allows otherwise. It is useful when holding delicate things."  
"Ah! This looks like professional hero-assisting gear! Where did you get it?"  
"My brother chose the gear-making route, and has been dedicating himself mostly to helping those whose quirks hinder them, as mine and my family does to us in daily life. He has a pair himself, of course."  
"I see!"  
Once again he was scribbling with excitment, quickly catching the gloves' visage in a doodle in his hero notebook.

He looked back up from the notebook, eyes falling on the last exchange student he hadn't questioned.  
"Karkat, can I ask you something too?"  
"YEAH, WHAT IS IT, SUPERDORK?"  
Izuku tapped his notebook, hesitant. Depending on the answer, he might be treading sensitive territory.  
"Why didn't you use your quirk on Nepeta during your fight? It would have saved you the effort and let you win much faster."  
As expected, Karkat immediately looked pissed. he always does, though.  
"WELL, FUCKFACE, BECAUSE I DIDN'T WANT TO! I KNOW TEREZI AND KANAYA COULD HANDLE THEM ALL. I DIDN'T NEED TO USE IT."  
"But, it would have finished your fight much faster, and more peacefully. Why didn't you-"  
"I think we must be going, Izuku. It's getting quite late and we all must rest after the exercise." Intervened Kanaya, putting a hand on Karkat's shoulder and smiling sweetly, but sternly, like a scolding mother, towards Midoriya. "We'll speak to you later."  
"Oh- Uh, right!" Put in his place, he took a step back and closed his notebook. It's then that he noticed the entire group's expressions changed. From quietly disapproving to annoyed to defensive, they all were huddling around Karkat like protective mother hens.  
Did he touch a known nerve?  
He backed off, doubt and curiosity mixing in him with the quiet regret and guilt of upsetting someone unintentionally. "Have a good rest!" he called after them as they went past him.  
As Karkat would say, fuck.

**Author's Note:**

> first chapter! This will likely have no more than one or two more. Comments are appreciated!


End file.
